Choiceless
by xkeymasterx
Summary: Sequel to Bittersweet Memories. Sam wanted her dead. The ashrak wanted her dead. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself, but can the Tau'ri and Tok'ra accept its help? ON HIATUS.
1. Introduction

Samantha wanted her to die. The ashrak wanted her to die. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which, as it turned out, was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself to protect the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra - but can they accept its help? Tok'ra heavy. AU off of In the Line of Duty. Rated T to be safe.

Disclaimer: If I actually owned Stargate: SG-1, it would've been radically different starting somewhere in Season 2.

Beta: Me, so don't be surprised if you see a grammar error! Just tell me in a review or PM so I can fix it. Thanks!

* * *

Hey guys! I'm back, finally! This was actually the first fanfic I started, the story that drew me into the world of fanfiction. I had this nearly completed and ready to post... until my computer partially fried. I'm rewriting it now, so updates may be short and a bit sporadic until I get a good amount of completed chapters built up. I simply couldn't wait any longer to post it. I hope you love reading it as much as I loved writing it!

Please leave a review on your way out!

Akaylah

* * *

[mental speech of host]

~mental speech of symbiote~

_flashbacks or dreams_

* * *

A figure lay alone, far under the earth in a dark hole that had never seen the light of the sun. Though she seemed to be sleeping deeply, sprawled out on the low bed, she had never been more awake. Something was wrong. Help was needed somewhere, something bad was about to happen. But what? She searched, tired though she was, for everyone she had ever helped, ever known. She could feel it, so close… but though she searched, it still eluded her…

* * *

~This is very, very bad.~

No answer. Again.

Why, in the name of everything sacred, had she gotten stuck with such a stubborn host?

Samantha Carter felt the irritation faintly leaking through their tenuous connection, and smiled gleefully. It seemed her Goa'uld was unused to being ignored.

~I am _not_ a Goa'uld!~ growled her Goa'uld for the umpteenth time. The little hint of mirth blossomed into a mental grin. Apparently, her Goa'uld also disliked being called… a Goa'uld. For a Goa'uld, her Goa'uld seemed _extremely_ touchy about certain things…

~Stop behaving like a larva!~ Jolinar finally shouted. Her patience, never long to begin with, had been clipped quite short by recent events. ~The ashrak that killed my… that killed _her_… is coming for us. _Both_ of us. He will kill you in order to kill me. You will only survive if you help me escape!~

[I don't _want_ to escape!] Samantha fired back, speaking to her for the first time after the initial panic. [I would _much_ rather die than be slave to a Goa'uld!]

~I am NOT a GOA'ULD!~ Jolinar exploded.

Samantha did a mental dance of glee. Her Goa'uld was really annoyed now. All her experience teasing her brother was finally paying off. With interest. Though, when she was eight, she hardly expected to use it to irritate a Goa'uld… a rather irritable Goa'uld…

Of course, most Goa'uld in her experience were quite irritable… this Goa'uld, for instance…

Jolinar temporarily forced the connection shut and tried to concentrate on how in the name of all the galaxies she was going to get out of this mess. It didn't help that her host was now singing "It's a Small World" at the top of her mental voice. Off key.

* * *

Like? No like? Tell me! One-liners greedily accepted, concrit delightedly devoured. My muse is a very hungry creature. The more you, the readers, feed it, the more chapters it will produce!

This is merely a prologue, more action in the next chapter.

Please, please review!


	2. Chapter 1

Samantha wanted her to die. The ashrak wanted her to die. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which, as it turned out, was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself to protect the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra - but can they accept its help? Tok'ra heavy. AU off of In the Line of Duty. Rated T to be safe. One cussword in this one.

* * *

[mental speech of host]

~mental speech of symbiote~

_dreams, flashbacks, etc._

* * *

Disclaimer: If you sue me, I won't even be able to pay the lawyer's fees. Sorry._  
_

* * *

Hey again! I warned you that you might get short chapters, but there is some important information in this one. Longer chapter next time. Hope you enjoy!

Akaylah

* * *

Why could she not find it? What was she missing? She was forgetting someone; that had to be it. Admittedly the list of 'her' people was long. She went through it again, with more care this time.

She hesitated at one particular name. Lantash. He was not in danger, but not well either. She focused on him, his unique mind, and a small trickle of information came through.

_"We refuse to give up, Nera. Jolinar is a fighter, the best among us. She will survive and return." His voice was oddly broken, as by a mixture of tears and anger._

_ "It has been months, Lantash. If she were alive, she would have contacted us by now."_

_ "No! They are not dead! I will not believe it!" A piece of something crashed into crystal walls that were already scarred._

She jerked violently, cursing herself for her oversight as her mind briefly ceased roving. Jolinar and Rosha. Months overdue, from the sound of it. She cursed again as she began to search locations for the symbiote, knowing that she might have changed hosts to avoid detection. She would not be able to search much longer; searching took strength of both mind and body, and she had to conserve enough to save them when she found them.

She almost did not notice yet another feeling whispering for her attention: there was a disturbance nearby, within the Stargate mountain. They were strong, but young, reckless. They needed constant watching. She moved her focus.

Jack O'Neill: angry. But he was angry a lot.

Daniel: sad. But he was sad a lot.

Samantha Carter: _whoa!_

She pulled up short.

Shit.

At least she had found Jolinar.

* * *

Sorry for the minor cliffie! The next chapter is about four times longer, just so you know - we get into some real action.

I'm hoping to post regularly every Tuesday and Friday, starting... well... Tuesday!

Please, please, please review! Reviews are my sole motivation!

XD


	3. Chapter 2

Samantha wanted her to die. The ashrak wanted her to die. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which, as it turned out, was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself to protect the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra - but can they accept its help? Tok'ra heavy. AU off of In the Line of Duty. Rated T to be safe.

* * *

[mental speech of host]

~mental speech of symbiote~

_dreams, flashbacks, etc._ Should be clear from context. If not, tell me!

* * *

Disclaimer: If you're seriously thinking about suing me, then you need to get a life.

* * *

This chapter is quite a bit longer than the first two, mainly because there was no good stopping place in here. I hope you enjoy, and I hope even more that you tell me about it! Thanks for reading!

Next chapter is scheduled for Friday, but if the review count for this chapter hits 6 (no copy posting, please), I'll post it early! I know there are a lot of people reading. Thanks Roeskva for reviewing last time!

Akaylah

* * *

~Stop that!~ Jolinar snapped.

Of course, that only made her host sing louder – which she had not thought possible a moment ago.

~I cannot protect us if you distract me! I do not wish to hurt you!~

The singing went even more off key.

She didn't notice the stronger presence of naquedah until the guards at her cell door abruptly disappeared. She tensed, but there was nothing she could do. ~He is coming for us, and I have no plan,~ she fumed.

The door burst open and light streamed in from the corridor. A yellow flash in the hallway, almost too brief to see, escaped her notice completely. The ashrak stalked in, walking pompously up to her cell door. As it opened, she eyed him, prepared to spring at the smallest opportunity, but he gave her none.

"Jolinar of Malkshur, you will die by order of the System Lords."

He raised his hand. Jolinar trembled inwardly at the sight of the hara'kesh, though no sign of weakness escaped her tight control. She glared. "My death will only feed the fire that burns strong in the Tok'ra," she spat, doing her best to incorporate all the contempt she felt for him into her last words. The device began to glow. Her mind flashed briefly back to Martouf and Lantash, and she felt pity for them.

Suddenly, a tiny green pellet of energy disappeared into the ashrak's back, and he collapsed instantly. The growing light in the hara'kesh faded as his hand fell limply to the floor.

"Jolinar! What are you doing here?" hissed a disembodied voice from somewhere in front of her. "I looked everywhere for you!"

In an instant, Jolinar went from indescribable relief to full alert. "Where are you? _What_ are you?" she hissed back, tensed for battle.

The air in front of her chuckled softly. The ashrak's wrists rose from in front of him and crossed themselves behind his back. "Relax. I came to help you," a definitely female voice murmured as some kind of wire appeared around his wrists, binding itself expertly in a few seconds.

"What are you?" Jolinar asked again.

"I can't show myself here. Take this." A tiny oblong object appeared out of nowhere and skidded across the floor, hitting Jolinar's foot.

"What is it?" she asked, backing away and eyeing it warily.

"Pick it up, we don't have much time," came the hiss. "They're coming, we have to get out of here."

Jolinar eyed the object again, but decided that her only option at present was to do what the voice said. As soon as she touched it, a band shot out from the device and encircled her palm, pulling itself into position over her wrist. She jerked and cursed in surprise. "What in –"

"Shut up!" hissed the voice more urgently. "Don't move!"

Jolinar raised her eyes from the device to the location of the voice out of pure habit, and stopped short with a small gasp when she did not see empty air.

She saw what looked to be a young woman, or maybe a teenager, encased from the soles of her feet to the crown of her head in armor. The dull gray metal covered literally every inch of her body, except for her face; there, the maker had obviously incorporated a clear material that did not obstruct her field of vision. Her face, which was pale to the point of seeming unnatural, was turned toward the door as she listened intently. As Jolinar watched her carefully, she slowly picked the unconscious ashrak up by his collar and dragged him quietly toward the empty corner of the room, away from the cell. Jolinar noted the presence of a band on his wrist identical to hers.

"What are you doing with him?" Jolinar asked in consternation. Ashrak were notoriously difficult to kill, and even harder to capture.

"I will get the host some help," she answered.

Jolinar eyed it doubtfully, keeping her distance.

"Come here," the girl muttered suddenly, so softly that Jolinar's enhanced hearing barely caught it. However, she could easily hear the tromping of booted feet in the corridor, which convinced her to follow her strange companion's advice. The soldiers entered but did not seem to see them at all. She quieted her breathing.

[Hey Makepeace, over here!]

Jolinar winced, even though no one could hear Samantha except her. Her host's stunned, curious silence of the past minute was suddenly very desirable.

[Makepeace, you idiot, get over here!]

~He cannot hear you,~ Jolinar reminded her, with as much restraint as she could muster.

[I know he can't!] spat Samantha. [But you can!]

~I can because I choose to,~ Jolinar snapped forcefully. ~I can hear you because I did not put you to sleep or deprive you of sensory input. I can hear you because, even though you are putting me in danger, I would rather die than suppress a human in that way! As I have told you, I am not Goa'uld!~

Sam was saved from replying by Makepeace's rough voice.

"All right, boys, let's go. The Goa'uld obviously escaped."

The woman beside them grinned victoriously, and Jolinar finally allowed herself a small shred of hope.

* * *

No cliffie this time! Aren't you proud of me? I'm such a cliffie addict...

Any guesses or observations about our mysterious friend? I'm deliberately dropping answers in little breadcrumbs over the next several chapters. Are there any questions you particularly want the answers to? If you sign in and review I will give you the answer in a PM (excepting vital plot points only). I promise her name and her background will come out in the story eventually, just not in the next couple of chapters.

Review to feed the muse! A well-fed muse is a happy, productive one! This story is tough to write, and your feedback keeps me going! Thanks for your time!

XD


	4. Chapter 3

Samantha wanted her to die. The ashrak wanted her to die. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which, as it turned out, was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself to protect the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra - but can they accept its help? Tok'ra heavy. AU off of In the Line of Duty. Rated T to be safe.

* * *

[mental speech of host]

~mental speech of symbiote~

_dreams, flashbacks, etc._ Should be clear from context. If not, tell me!

* * *

Disclaimer: really?

* * *

Hey guys! Brand new chap for you! It's short but you'll get a longer one on Tuesday - earlier if you give me six reviews for this one!

PS: I have received some comments about ship. This story will not have a whole lot of canon character ship in it for a long, long time, maybe never. We'll see. So no matter what ship you like, you can enjoy this one. I did that on purpose.

Thanks ever so much to Roeskva and Shams for reviewing the last chapter!

* * *

Jolinar crept silently down the corridor, the mysterious girl beside her. The hallway was empty for the moment, which was a great relief – they had already had a few close calls with double-timing airmen. The main problem was not the soft sounds they produced, since Jolinar was well-trained in stealth and her companion somehow seemed to avoid making any sound at all, even with the unconscious ashrak hoisted onto her shoulder. Rather, it was the problem of avoiding being barreled into by people who didn't know they were there. Being invisible, though it allowed them to move through the base unmolested, apparently had its own drawbacks.

Sam had called a tacit truce, which Jolinar knew would only be temporary. She had stopped futilely baiting the symbiote in favor of puzzling over the device on her wrist. Jolinar, despite her worries, obligingly held the device up so Samantha could see it again. This, she noted with amusement, seemed to astonish her temporary host. Sam was irritated by her mirth. Jolinar frowned.

"Carter can look at that later," muttered their companion, still methodically scanning in all directions. "Keep your eyes up."

Jolinar acquiesced with a trace of reluctance; looking at the device had pleased Samantha. ~I promise, we will ask whatever questions you wish when it is safe to do so.~

[What's this about 'we'?] Sam fired back sarcastically. Jolinar merely sighed and did not answer.

Sam didn't really mourn the loss of her previous puzzle; she now had several to occupy her thoughts. How had their companion known that it was she who wanted to look at the device, and not Jolinar? How had she known her name? Why had the symbiote wanted to please her? And why on Earth was she now calling a Goa'uld a symbiote instead of a parasite?

Jolinar bit back her ever-present irritation over being called a Goa'uld. ~Samantha, blending, even on this minimal level, affects both of us. I wished to please you because I find your curiosity endearing. You began to think of me as a symbiote because you are beginning to know that _that_ is what I really am.~

Sam tried to feel irritated at Jolinar's invasion of her private thoughts, until she realized that none of Jolinar's thoughts were private either. Perhaps it was an unavoidable side effect of the blending.

~It is,~ said Jolinar gently. She paused. ~I am sorry.~

* * *

How was this chapter? I'm not sure if I got the host/symbiote interactions right. Did you buy it?

[For the curious: In my world, a _fully blended_ pair can shield thoughts from one another, but Jolinar's connection is so tenuous that she has reduced control.]

If you guys give me six reviews for this chapter, I'll post the next one early! That's a standing offer from now on. Please review! Whenever I'm stuck (like now), reading reviews helps give me inspiration! You guys are my motivation!

Thanks for reading!


	5. Chapter 4

Sorry this update was a little late! RL is being difficult. Hope you enjoy this chapter! Thanks so much for reading! Next update may be delayed by a couple of days because the next chapter is not yet completed. The more reviews I get, the better I will write!

Special thanks to Roeskva and Belle Morte Rising for reviewing and keeping me going!

Akaylah

* * *

Their companion tapped Jolinar's shoulder and indicated a door in the corridor with a nod. Sam felt a pang of previously suppressed panic as she realized that the door led to an escape ladder.

Flinching from the onslaught of her host's sudden unpleasant emotion, Jolinar hastened to reassure her. ~Please, Samantha, I will not keep you against your will. Search my mind if it will help you to believe me.~

[Then why haven't you left me yet?] snapped Sam, even though she knew it was becoming an excuse.

~There is no other host available, and I will not take someone else against their will just to leave you,~ she replied with a rare touch of bitterness. ~I will not compound my sin,~ she muttered to herself, though of course Sam heard.

[I would not ask you to do that,] Sam replied, more calmly - until she realized that she thought she could _ask_ Jolinar for anything. When did she start trusting the thing that took her over and was trying to escape with her?

Jolinar was exasperated. ~Your thoughts are circular!~ she barked harshly.

Sam's terror abruptly rose to engulf her again. [Shut up and leave me the hell alone!] she yelled, retreating as far away from the symbiote's consciousness as she could. Jolinar winced.

"Psst!"

Jolinar looked about her and saw that her companion had moved down the hallway and was standing almost directly under what her host's mind automatically identified as a security camera. She raised an eyebrow at the hiss.

"Watch out!" she whispered. Jolinar, though she was already a good distance away, backed up another few steps. Sam had unknowingly eased forward out of curiosity.

The armored figure dumped the ashrak from off her shoulder and stood on tiptoe, reaching up toward the camera. When she was at full stretch, a bolt of energy flew from her fingers into the device. Though the flash of energy had looked rather small, the camera exploded violently. As soon as her ears adjusted, Jolinar caught the sound of booted feet running toward them.

"Keep away!" hissed the girl warningly as she sprinted over and attacked the bolts holding the exit door in place. Craning her neck, Jolinar saw twin devices on her armored palms that she could have sworn were not there before. Her hands hovered an inch above the metal bolts as they unscrewed themselves impossibly fast. She jerked the door open. "Go! I'm right behind you!" She ran back over to where she had left the ashrak, praying that he was still unconscious, and roughly dragged him back to the door by his collar. The soldiers were about to turn the last corner. She threw him over her shoulder again, stepped onto the ladder, closed the door, and put both her hands over where the bolts were attached on the other side.

* * *

The soldiers ran into the hallway only to see the remains of the security camera scattered about almost to the closed and bolted exit door. It looked as if Jolinar had somehow destroyed the device on her way through.

Makepeace's radio crackled as a sharp voice echoed through the speaker. "Status, Makepeace."

He sighed as he responded to the communication. "Come ahead, O'Neill, no one's shooting at us."

A few moments later, Jack and Teal'c rounded the corner at a jog. O'Neill whistled when he caught sight of the camera's scattered remains. "So, she's armed."

"Appears so," Colonel Makepeace replied. "Though I haven't a clue what with. That security camera looks like it just exploded into tiny bits."

"Great," he muttered. "So we have an armed Goa'uld and an unknown security breach, both loose."

"O'Neill," called Teal'c. "I cannot discern in which direction the fugitive exited this hallway."

"Well, if she went left, she'll run into a guard down there. Makepeace, we'll take it from here. Hammond wants you in charge of the north gate."

Makepeace nodded and turned to go back the way they had come. "Good luck, O'Neill."

Jack sighed and ran his hands through his hair, preparing to move forward, when something caught his eye. The emergency exit door had small scratches on it - scratches that looked as if the bolts had been loosened and re-tightened. He stopped and frowned, reaching out to touch them, and then jerked back with a yelp when the metal burned his finger.

"Are you injured, O'Neill?" asked Teal'c.

O'Neill shook both his head and his finger. "No, T, I'm fine. The door's hot."

Teal'c regarded it with curiosity, putting his hand close to feel the heat, then moved his serious gaze to the scraps of metal on the floor. "I believe the fugitive means to escape through this tunnel."

Jack took off his jacket and wrapped it around his hands, cautiously reaching for the bolts. "What could have re-tightened the bolts from the inside?"

Teal'c held his staff weapon ready to fire as the door creaked open. "I do not know, O'Neill."

* * *

So, what did you think? The great O'Neill is tracking our fugitives now... bet you can't guess what will come of that! mwahahaha!

Please review! Nice day to ya!

XD


	6. Chapter 5

Samantha wanted her to die. The ashrak wanted her to die. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which, as it turned out, was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself to protect the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra - but can they accept its help? Tok'ra heavy. AU off of In the Line of Duty. Rated T to be safe.

* * *

[mental speech of host]

~mental speech of symbiote~

_dreams, flashbacks, etc._ Should be clear from context. If not, tell me!

* * *

Disclaimer: get over it already. If you own the rights to anything Stargate: SG-1, then you've got plenty of money; you don't need mine!

* * *

Many thanks to Roeskva and Ne'ith5 for reviewing! Your reviews were my inspiration!

Sorry this chapter was late! I promise that I'm not going to leave you hanging! Thanks for reading!

Akaylah

* * *

Jolinar squinted into the blackness immediately below her feet and found that she could see better than normal in the dark. Even the rivets in the tunnel wall were just as impossibly clear and sharp as the two beings below her. She frowned curiously. Perhaps the invisibility device also conferred improved sight?

[It's heat.]

The symbiote was instantly overjoyed that Samantha was talking to her again, but she did not follow her thought. ~Hm?~

[You're seeing things in black and white, no color. This looks like a sophisticated form of infrared imaging technology. You're seeing heat.]

~Ah,~ she smiled. ~You are most likely correct. Thank you, Samantha.~

Sam was surprised. She had just _corrected_ a Goa'uld, and she had _thanked_ her!

Jolinar sighed. ~Samantha, please. Would it do you injury to refer to me as 'Tok'ra' or 'symbiote'? Anything except for _Goa'uld_? Among my people that is the _worst_ insult one could give another.~

Sam hesitated.

The strange being below her suddenly stopped and leaned on the ladder. Jolinar could hear her quiet panting and her deep intake of breath as her head drooped. Sam's thought instantly vanished into shared concern.

"What is it?" Jolinar asked quietly, wincing at the way the sound echoed down the tunnel.

"My strength is ebbing," the girl answered equally softly. "I have had no rest in days, and I used most of my remaining strength to find you. I cannot climb the entire ladder without a respite."

"Will you - "

"Yes, I'll be fine," she answered tiredly, interrupting Jolinar with a sigh. A moment of silence followed.

Jolinar frowned as a new question entered her mind. "How _did_ you find us?"

"I... just looked." Jolinar sighed at the unhelpful answer. "I suppose Sam would call me a telepath... and probably a creep too..." she added with a grin that neither of her companions could see.

However, both Jolinar and Sam could hear the wry humor in her last phrase. "What is your meaning?" Jolinar asked.

"I keep tabs on a lot of people."

Jolinar was confused until her host supplied the meaning of the idiom. "Who?"

She tilted her head, listening for sounds from below. "Oh, mostly anyone who might be of use against the Goa'uld. So, for instance, free-minded Jaffa."

Jolinar nodded in understanding. "Or Tok'ra. Or Tau'ri."

[Yep. Creepy.]

Jolinar smiled. ~But useful.~

The girl nodded back. "Pretty much every anti-Goa'uld group with any power that I've ever found, with the sole exception of the Asgard. They can tell when I'm feeling for them." The girl settled the unconscious ashrak on her shoulder again and blew out a deep breath, gazing upward. "We better get moving, we have a long way to go."

Jolinar nodded and started to climb again, at the same fast yet easy rhythm they had established a few minutes earlier. They had already climbed four floors, but there were many more to pass before the tunnel ended in an escape hatch. "How do you keep up with the whereabouts of so many?" she asked, continuing the conversation.

"You mean, do I travel a lot? Gather frequent flyer miles?" she grinned, knowing Sam would appreciate the humor. "Well," - and here she paused - "I do get around quite a bit, I guess..."

"But that is not your main source of information?" Jolinar pressed.

"It's one source. My main one is... just searching. Like I searched for you. Some have called it 'remote viewing', I believe. A very inaccurate term, by the way, because I feel and hear more than I actually see most of the time. It's like..." she paused thoughtfully, "...like accessing a tiny bit of someone's surface thoughts and emotions from a huge distance."

Suddenly the girl froze and looked down. Jolinar could not even hear her soft breathing anymore. As she too stilled, the symbiote thought she could barely catch an echo of a human cry. She frowned. "What is it?" she whispered.

Her companion merely held up a closed fist, still looking down. Jolinar looked down to the glimmering door that they had used to enter the tunnel.

[Is that movement?] asked Sam. Jolinar strained her enhanced eyesight just in time to see the door shudder, then slowly creak open. There was a vague mass of heat out in the hallway. Suddenly, a figure poked his head in, gun first, and Sam instantly recognized her commander. She felt a thrill of emotion.

~He does not think you are still alive,~ reminded Jolinar sadly. ~He still believes that I am a Goa'uld.~

Their companion took one look at the door and began creeping silently up the ladder, motioning frantically for Jolinar to climb too.

[No! Let me speak to him!] Sam cried. [I can make him believe it's me!]

Jolinar deliberately turned away and began climbing up. ~Can you?~

The challenge brought her up short. She thought for a moment, remembering Kawalsky's Goa'uld's deception with a wince. The Colonel would believe that she was another Kawalsky. Could she really say anything to change that?

~Well?~

[No,] Samantha whispered. [You're right, it wouldn't do any good. Even if I show up with you completely gone, they'll still wonder if you altered me somehow.]

The metal vibrated in their hands as several pairs of heavy booted feet began to tromp up the ladder. Sam winced. Her own friends were chasing them now.

~As repulsive as that idea is to me, they cannot know me as you do. In the current situation, they must assume for their own safety that I am a threat. I understand that.~

[That doesn't mean I have to like it,] growled Sam with a flash of anger.

~No, but we must plan our actions around it. Currently, we have no other choice than to retreat until our current state changes.~

As they continued creeping up the ladder, Sam silently cursed her ill fortune for landing her in such an impossible situation.

* * *

Thoughts? Criticisms? Guesses about where I'm going to go next? A pivotal event is about to happen in the next chapter or two - the event that will dictate the entire rest of the plot. One free oneshot request (just no slash, please) to anyone who can guess!

Please, please review! One-word anonymous reviews are completely awesome. Just please drop me a line!

Thank you all so much for reading! Nice day to ya!

XD


	7. Chapter 6

Warning: This chapter is one of the reasons this fic is rated T. There's a bit of pretty intense violence toward the end. That said, if you read normal T-rated stories you'll be fine.

* * *

Hey guys! So, you're getting your longest chapter yet by far! Hooray! It took me FOREVER to write, because I had to rework it several times. I hope you enjoy the finished product! You're getting the big turning point of this story in this chapter, as promised!

PLEASE review! This chapter took me literally hours of difficult work - I really want to know what you think!

Special thanks to Roeskva for reviewing the last chapter, and thanks to everyone for reading!

Akaylah

PS: If you've PM'd me recently, I haven't gotten it because my Inbox has apparently decided to quit working. I'm really, really sorry if you've messaged me and I haven't responded! I just figured out that this was happening a few minutes ago. Again, I'm really, really sorry!

* * *

Jack looked up into the yawning black hole above him, and then into the abyss below. He heard nothing except for the soft grunts of his detachment as they followed him into the ladder shaft. After a few moments, the tunnel was once again quiet.

"Teal'c," he whispered to the blackness between his boots.

A small light flicked on just under him, held by a familiar hand.

"You hear anything?"

Teal'c froze for a moment, then shook his head. "I cannot, O'Neill," he replied softly. Jack grunted and prepared to move up, when he felt it.

The ladder was vibrating.

He stopped and looked back down at Teal'c, who now had his ear pressed to the cold metal. Just to be sure, he craned his neck to make certain none of his people were moving. They weren't. He looked back at Teal'c.

The Jaffa met his eyes., speaking in a barely audible murmur. "There are two on the ladder above us. They are close."

Jack looked up again, focusing on the regular rhythm shuddering through his hands. Carter was probably up there.

He stopped himself. She's not your Carter anymore.

Gritting his teeth in silent anger, he forced his mind to work.

"Lieutenant, take the boys back out of the tunnel. Get on an elevator, go up to Level 3, and reenter this shaft. Stay quiet. Teal'c, you're with me, take point."

"Yes, sir," the young officer whispered back as he pushed the steel door open again. Teal'c merely nodded and fell in step with Jack as the two began to climb.

* * *

Step. Climb. Keep going.

Up and up and up.

Jolinar had deliberately calmed her swirling emotions and forced herself to focus solely on climbing up the ladder quietly, steadily, and swiftly. The physical exertion bothered her little - which felt very strange to Sam after about the seventh floor - but the constant care necessary to keep her booted footfalls quiet was mentally wearing. The Tok'ra _was_ worried about their companion below, who had recently complained of fatigue, but the girl had held her own and even increased the pace. Jolinar knew very well that they were being followed, because she could dimly sense Teal'c's symbiote. Even though Teal'c himself probably couldn't sense her presence, because his Goa'uld was only a larva, he had to know that she was there.

Suddenly a foreign voice echoed within her skull.

**Jolinar! Sam!**

[What the hell!] exclaimed Carter, startled out of her depressed silence.

**They're coming from the side! We gotta move, _now_!**

Jolinar realized that the voice was similar to their companion's speaking voice, though not quite the same.

**Go, go, go!**

At the same moment, Jolinar and Sam also heard the grinding echo of a large bolt unscrewing. The sound was coming from the door to the floor above them. Jolinar threw stealth to the wind and began to run up the ladder. The girl below them gritted her teeth and forced herself to do the same.

They were in a race. If the airmen got the door unbolted before they could climb above it, they would be surrounded.

In the next few seconds, many things happened.

The airmen jerked the door open just as Jolinar was even with it. One of them raised his weapon and fired blindly at the shuddering ladder. A grunt escaped Jolinar's tightly clenched teeth as she struggled to keep going through the pain of a gunshot.

Their companion below looked up in horror as fine blood spatter appeared on her eye protection. Just then, O'Neill yelled something unintelligible and fired a volley of zat'ni'katel blasts past Teal'c, who continued climbing. She barely had time to activate her shields before the blue energy reached her. She herself was partially immune to zat'ni'katels, but without the shield the energy would be conducted across her armor and straight into Jolinar. The energy shield was already weak and began to fail quickly.

Jolinar, temporarily unable to continue up the ladder, clenched her teeth harder and swung a foot out at the door. Her own cry of bitter pain mingled with that of the owner of the offending weapon. He fell backward into his surprised comrades, but they quickly brought their own weapons up.

Their companion saw what was happening and growled like an animal. She had to get up there. If she could force herself into the opening of the door, her armor would protect the already injured Tok'ra from the impending spray of bullets. Breathing heavily, she leapt up the ladder three rungs at a time.

Jolinar, struggling desperately to control the pain and blood loss, thrust Sam into control. She automatically opened her mouth to yell a command to the airmen, but the ominous clicks of guns being readied to fire made her close it again and struggle to pull herself up the ladder.

Their companion was jumping up the ladder like a cat, swinging to the side to get between Sam and the door. The airmen's fingers tightened around the triggers, searching for a likely target. She was almost there.

It was at this precise instant that the ashrak snapped awake with an ill-tempered roar. He wrenched his host's body savagely in an attempt to throw his captor off balance, just as she made her final jump. With a cry of anger and frustration, she twisted in the air and caught hold of the door frame at the bottom.

Flailing desperately, the ashrak managed to entangle his foot in the ladder before he fell very far. Muscles bulging, he jerked his arms hard and managed to snap the metal wire binding his wrists together. With a practiced spring, he righted himself and began to run back up the ladder. He could sense his prey above him, and his keen nose scented its blood. He put on his spare hara'kesh.

Jolinar's companion gathered her strength and launched herself from the bottom lip of the door to the side of the ladder rung even with its top jamb, mostly covering Sam's now-quivering body. Carter was now barely conscious and holding on desperately. Another zat'ni'katel blast zinged past her ear, though their frequency had slowed.

The airmen, seeing that the ladder's movement now seemed to be centered just below the door, poured bullets straight into the hunting ashrak. He let out another sound of animal rage as he lost control of his host's shattered body and began to fall. His invisibility device, damaged by a bullet, flickered and failed.

The armored girl was twisting about, struggling to keep the bullets aimed her way from ricocheting back into the airmen in the doorway. Though her reflexes were extraordinarily fast, she was unable to block one bullet that hit Sam's calf near the ankle. Hastily, the girl shifted her already precarious hold, freeing one hand to clamp it over Sam's mouth. Sam jerked automatically but the girl held on, stifling Sam's yelp of pain. Abruptly, Carter's eyes rolled back in her head as she succumbed to the wounds. Her companion grabbed her by her far shoulder, suspecting that the one nearest the door had been shot, and held on for dear life as the one hundred ten-pound captain slipped free of the rungs and hung like a rag doll. She wrapped her legs around the ladder, struggling to pull Sam back up and out of the airmen's line of fire.

But they were not firing; they were watching the ashrak's fall with morbid fascination. Their fingers twitched on the triggers but they dared not fire for fear of hitting the Colonel or Teal'c two stories below.

The ashrak hurtled downward, still struggling to regain control of his host's body. Teal'c was forced to lean to the side to avoid a full-on collision; he grabbed at the falling mass but was unable to hold on.

"O'Neill! Look out!" he shouted over his shoulder. By now, Jack was nearly twenty feet below him, since the Colonel had stopped to fire while Teal'c continued climbing. He looked up and wrapped one arm around the ladder, prepared to catch the ashrak as he fell past.

Jolinar and Sam's companion finished hauling their limp body up even with her own, and awkwardly pulled them into a fireman's hold with one hand. The unavoidable rustling and bumping attracted the airmen's attention. The young lieutenant in charge shouted a warning as the guns came to bear again. Teal'c looked up at the renewed commotion even as Jack reached out and grabbed the ashrak by the shirt.

He hadn't been able to clearly see all that was going on; since the Goa'uld was dressed in military fatigues, he thought it might have been one of the airmen. So when the limp man suddenly stiffened and grabbed the arm holding him up, he merely tightened his grip and pulled him closer to the ladder. "Easy there. You'll be all right."

The ashrak suddenly lurched up and grabbed the back of Jack's neck, squeezing savagely on a pressure point, simultaneously pushing himself up the ladder. He quickly activated the hara'kesh on his other hand, enjoying the human's faint groan as he sent just enough energy to stun. He always wanted his new hosts to be fully conscious for their subjugation.

He reached out and ripped O'Neill's uniform, exposing his shoulder and upper chest. He looked on the paralyzed body of his next host with appreciation. This one would be much stronger than his last. He took off the hara'kesh and placed it in the new human's pocket.

The glow from his dead host's eyes faintly illuminated the human's terrified face in the tiny instant before the parasite jumped from his old host's mouth to gleefully bury itself in the soft flesh between his new host's prominent collarbones. He took his time, enjoying the faint shudders he could feel all around him.

The pain was unlike anything Jack had ever known. He longed to scream, but he could only shake. He managed to open his mouth, but no sound came out. He could feel every centimeter of the parasite's progress through his neck. The shouting above him faded as his entire world shrank down to the excruciating invasion of his body. Now, it had reached his spine and began to travel upward toward his brain. The pain and the panic increased exponentially. He was shaking violently, nearly convulsing, but he could not move. Then the pain reached its pinnacle as the Goa'uld forced him to give up his body. Every inch of his being felt like it was on fire.

Then, it was over. He saw the alien glow from his own eyes reflecting off the ladder. Terror choked him, drowned him. He passed out.

* * *

[Cue Beethoven's Fifth] Ah, yes, the big plot turner! We are out of the setup phase, people! Get excited! Lots more action to come!

(I'm really excited - can you tell?)

I especially want to know what you think of this chapter! How did you like the pacing and the description? I deliberately kept it a little edgy and jumpy until the end bit. Even if you hate where it went at the end, just tell me! Reviews, even unfavorable ones, keep me going through the tough spots! Thanks guys!

Thank you all again SO much for reading!

XD


	8. Chapter 7

This chapter is slightly different from the previous ones - it's written from the stranger's point of view. I didn't really start out intending to write it this way, it just seemed the best way to give you guys a better feel for the character. If it gets confusing at any point, don't hesitate to drop me a line.

* * *

Crap.

This was NOT good. At all.

Jolinar and Sam were both out of commission and slung across her shoulder, depriving her of some of her mobility. And, of course, the Earth projectile weapons were inconveniently bouncing off her armor. Thankfully the tunnel shaft was not as narrow as it could have been, or all the bullets would have inevitably ricocheted either into the airmen or into Sam.

The hail of bullets lessened.

See, no matter how bad things got, they could always get worse. Or better.

Suddenly, intense feelings hit her with the force of a fastball from a major league pitcher. What the hell? She staggered, her mind overwhelmed for one tiny instant by the intense terror and pain. An extraordinarily small amount of time later, she regained control.

It had come from below. She looked down and saw, not a darkened tunnel, but a clear picture. Looking past Teal'c, she saw the emotions pouring from O'Neill like light pours from a lit lighthouse. Damage... reorganization... addition...

Then he passed out. He was taken. _Taken!_ She instinctively moved to descend and help, but the encumbering weight on her shoulder jerked her out of her dangerous tunnel vision. Even though a Goa'uld had just taken over the second-in-command of the Earth base, she _had_ to get the twice-injured Sam out immediately.

The Goa'uld looked up at her - no, at Sam - and began to climb. The girl cursed fluently in a language closely resembling Cantonese.

And, of _course_, the airmen heard her.

There was no way she could climb up the ladder while shielding her wounded passenger from the airmen's line of fire, so she reluctantly activated her last shield - the tertiary backup. Her secondary backup had already taken more than she thought it could; perhaps the improvements in her energy storage cells were better than she realized. This one, however, was her oldest and least reliable... which was why she avoided using it.

It activated with a faint green flash and spread out to encompass both her and Sam. It absorbed the bullets successfully, but there was no way it would take that kind of punishment for long. As she began to run up the ladder, the shield shuddered from the impact of a staff weapon blast; Teal'c was firing at her now. Having gone through all her favorite curse-phrases in one language, she switched to another dialect and kept going.

The situation certainly deserved it, in her opinion.

Here she was, trying to save a potential ally of Earth, along with an important Earth warrior, from a Goa'uld - a _Goa'uld_ - and the Earth forces were firing at _her_. Now _that_ made perfect sense. A bitter smirk grew on her face even as she grit her teeth, forcing herself to keep going.

Anyone who said the universe didn't have a highly sarcastic sense of humor obviously hadn't lived very long.

* * *

Hey guys! I'm so, so sorry this chapter has taken so long to post! I literally haven't had time to get a decent night's sleep in more than two weeks. There's probably some issues with this chapter - I wrote it at 1:00 AM and didn't proofread it as thoroughly as I usually do - but I decided to post it as is because it's been way too long between posts. If you see an error, don't hesitate to point it out to me! You'll be helping me out!

Thank you SO much to Roeskva for reviewing every single chapter I have put up so far. Thank you also to SerenityLago for reviewing my previous chapter, and finally, thank you to all my loyal readers!

Please leave a review on your way out! Short reviews are completely cool, just drop me a line! Thanks again!

Nice day [or night] to ya!

XD


	9. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I really don't own anything but my plot and my OC's... but if you're selling...

* * *

I'm so, so, SO sorry this took me so long! Been going through a rough patch with RL. It'll be over soon, I hope, but until it is I'll probably be able to post only one chapter a week, if that. I apologize again, and I promise I'm not going to abandon this story! It's just getting warmed up! I was hoping to move the action forward a bit more in this chapter but I ran out of time to write. When I have more time you'll get longer chapters - another promise!

Thanks to Ne'ith5, Roeskva, and SerenityLago for reviewing the last chapter! You guys are awesome!

Akaylah

* * *

The fugitives had finally moved above the airmen, who were still firing from the door below them. Their rate of fire had slowed again, mainly because they were beginning to run out of ammunition. One of their number had been dispatched to the nearest armory but had not yet returned.

The girl refused to think of all the ground she had covered thus far, or how completely drained she felt, for she knew if she focused on her fatigue they would never make it out of the tunnel. Sam was bleeding dangerously, in spite of the half-conscious symbiote's efforts, which alarmed their companion to no end.

Her foot slipped on the ladder, startling her hazy mind out of its wandering. "Stop that!" she muttered to herself. "Focus! You're almost there!"

It was true. She had run up multiple stories without a break while already fatigued - a feat of endurance beyond even the Tok'ra - and was now drawing near to the escape hatch. Her sensors showed no life on the surface around it. She sighed with relief; in her severely weakened state there was no way she could've fought off a contingent of determined Earth soldiers while protecting Sam and Jolinar. But why hadn't anyone thought to put people up there?

Her foot slipped again. "Focus!" she growled to herself. "You're gonna drop them!"

Even as she reached the escape hatch and began struggling one-handed with the great big wheel lock, her mind wandered yet again. "I really should quit talking to myself."

* * *

O'Neill woke sluggishly, fighting his way up from the abyss of unconsciousness, only to find that his eyes were already open and his body was moving without his will to command it. Next, he realized with a feeling of indescribable horror that a foreign entity was riffling through his memories like he would riffle through his collection of DVDs. And, furthermore, the foreign entity was doing this to figure out the best way to kill Sam. Outrage quickly replaced horror. [What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?] he yelled mentally.

The other entity jerked, mildly surprised by the outburst. ~Silence, Tau'ri,~ it snapped, continuing its invasion of _his _mind.

[Get outta my head, you snake bastard!] he screamed in return.

The Goa'uld barely spared him enough notice to be annoyed. ~I will deal with you later.~

Jack struggled, roaring with rage, but the snake paid his efforts no attention at all. It knew its strength and did not have time to punish its new slave's impertinence.

It grinned in self-satisfied pleasure at his choice of host; this one held a position of power within their pitiful hierarchy. This one had even been the one to kill Ra! Amazing. The High System Lord must have been slipping in his old age, for such a group of animals to even get _close_ to besting him. There were rumors that the ones on this planet might be slightly more advanced, but the ashrak could see nothing unusual about his current place of residence.

"O'Neill!"

Jack automatically supplied the speaker's name and background before he could stop himself - and then he hated himself for doing it, even though he was very aware of every human's inability to control their own thoughts. The ashrak smirked as he took a step up towards the traitor Jaffa. O'Neill unleashed a torrent of extraordinarily foul language.

Teal'c, squinting through the gloom, did not miss the way the Colonel's zat'ni'katel moved casually to point in his direction, but he could not yet sense the Goa'uld. However, he could easily tell that his friend was... what did the Tau'ri say?... 'off'. "Are you injured, O'Neill?" he inquired. There _had_ been a large number of stray bullets bouncing around, but he had thought them relatively harmless; after all, one had hit his jacket a moment ago and had not even broken through the fabric. It was as if the propelling force had been sucked out of them and they had simply fallen. He had yet to detect any offensive action from their target, which was a puzzle he set aside for later.

O'Neill took another step up the ladder, and suddenly Teal'c's eyes widened as he sensed the alien presence. He expertly twirled the staff in his hands to point down instead of up, but the Goa'uld had fired off two shots from his zat'ni'katel before he had a chance. Jack watched in horror as his friend's body slowly went limp, slowly slipped away from the lifesaving ladder, and slowly crumpled to fall headfirst down the long shaft. However, he was not allowed to watch Teal'c's horrific descent because the Goa'uld looked upward instead, intent on killing yet another of his team. And as the nightmare continued, Jack spared a tiny instant to thank whatever _true_ deity guided their destinies that Daniel was nowhere around.

* * *

Her arm shook uncontrollably as she gave the final pull, and she knew very well that she was using up her very last reserves of strength. That was bad. She _did_ still have to get them through the perimeter, after all. Sam's blood loss had finally slowed; Jolinar, though weak from changing hosts, must have at last mustered enough strength to deal with it. Well, if the Tok'ra could do it, so could she.

With one last heave, the hatch yielded and flipped back, allowing sunlight to flood the tunnel. The girl allowed herself a tired smile as she stepped out of the murderous tunnel and into the strong light of sunny Colorado.

As she resealed the tunnel and looked about, however, the smile morphed back into a frown.

Of _course_ the shaft had dumped her out into the middle of a large, flat field within sight of one of the mountain's many entrances. As if on cue, the small cloaking unit she had given Sam flickered red and then went dark. Some higher power really had it in for her today.

* * *

The ashrak cursed violently when he saw the stream of light quickly cut off by his escaping quarry. The airmen began pouring up the ladder, seeking to reopen the hatch, but it refused to budge.

Carefully suppressing his voice modulation, the Goa'uld dug around for the proper phrase. It took almost no time at all. "Report, Lieutenant," he barked, imitating his host's memories.

"The hatch won't open, sir," said the young man apologetically. "It must have been tampered with somehow."

The assassin barely suppressed a flanged growl of rage as he made for the open door a few stories below. His only thought was finding another way out as quickly as possible so he could kill the troublesome orak. Since he was also completely ignoring his host at the moment, he missed the brief thought that would have told him his mistake.

"Sir? What are your orders, sir?" called the lieutenant to the now-empty shaft. He frowned. It wasn't like the Colonel to just abandon his subordinates without instructions.

* * *

orak = 'unspeakable', according to Daniel.

Review, review! Any thoughts you have will be eagerly read and re-read! No kidding! Hit counts are a somewhat reliable measure of about how many people read, but reviews are my only way to find out what you guys actually think about aspects of the story. Even if it's scathing, I won't really mind! I know I could improve.

Thank you all for reading!

XD


	10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but my OC and my plot. Sad day.

* * *

Hey guys. I'm so, so, so sorry it's been so long. My cousin, who was about a year younger than me, committed suicide with his grandfather's gun a few weeks ago. It's been really hard on us all. Needless to say, I didn't exactly have a lot of motivation to write for a long time.

I'm not sure whether the next chapter will take a few days or a few weeks, but rest assured** I am not abandoning this story** no matter what! It might be a good idea to put this fic on story alerts, since I'm not adhering to a regular updating schedule right now. Thanks for your patience and understanding.

I would like to thank LAeyeball, Pagan Twylight, and Roeskva for reviewing my last chapter! The time between updates is heavily influenced by how many reviews I get - even if they're one word! You guys are my reason for writing!

**PS**: I'm using a slightly different format for this chapter. I'm using italics for people's thoughts, so I don't have to write them in third person - that was getting irritating to me as a writer. If my readers (that's you) like it, I'll go back and change the previous chapters into this format. Review and tell me if I should keep it!

I _swear_ that my OC's name will be revealed in the next chapter! :D

Thanks for reading!

Akaylah

* * *

_sub-vocalized thoughts _(thoughts you 'speak' to yourself in your head)

* * *

She was hissing words that would undoubtedly have made her caretakers roll over in their graves - if they had _had_ graves.

With that thought, the stream of rather inventive curses trailed off into a sigh. _Who am I to complain? I am alive. And even if I lose this fight, I've won so many others.._.

**_Clang!_**

Her head whipped around to see the hatch she had just welded shut shudder under another blow. Her chuckle turned into a groan of pain as her neck protested the sudden movement. Everything hurt - a sure sign that she needed to get to shelter _now_. She was about to literally collapse on her feet.

Still, she was better off than her traveling companions...

_Shut up. Focus. Idiot._

Gritting her teeth _again_, she replaced the dead cloaking unit on Sam's wrist and picked them back up, praying that she wasn't hurting them further as she headed off to the nearest patch of trees. Though she did not turn her head, her sensors told her that none of the guards had noticed the commotion.

_Why in Netu haven't they already been ordered to surround the hatch?_

Her audio sensors caught the barked syllable of an order. The guards at both the inner and outer gates raised their weapons and began converging on the hatch at a run.

_Me and my big mouth... brain... whatever. Time to go._ And with that, she began trotting as fast as she could toward the clump of trees nearer to the mountain's mighty base. Running was not even an option.

The contingents of MP's were moving faster than she was, but they had further to go. With a victorious grin, she finally entered the shade and knelt behind the fourth tree she passed, setting Sam and Jolinar carefully down on the ground. There was a small open space here, filled with nothing but grass and a few small rocks. Leaning forward, she retracted the armor from her right hand and placed it firmly on the biggest rock, murmuring a strange word. The faint flash of the scanner warmed her hand, and she grinned in relief as the ground shifted under her.

* * *

The ashrak growled in frustration as he sped toward the exit. How had his host managed to hide the information about the surface patrols for so long?

O'Neill smirked, very quietly. He simply hadn't thought of it. After his slip-up with Teal'c, he had focused on controlling his thoughts - concentrating on specific, harmless subjects one after another. It was incredibly hard, but if it inconvenienced the snake invading his head, it was worth it. Eventually the ashrak had come _looking_ for it, realizing that there must have been some kind of security on the surface. Then, it had been impossible to resist, but at least he had bought a little time.

"Major! Tunnel eight! Double-time!" called the ashrak using O'Neill's voice as he swept out into the light - and then had to force himself to not get too far ahead of his weak human servants.

Jack couldn't help a snort at that one.

* * *

A square section of ground lifted up at an angle beside her hand. The dark opening was small, barely large enough for her to fit through. She pivoted on her heels and reached for Sam, then froze for just an instant as her fatigue-muddled brain processed something new. A Goa'uld was leading the MP's that were rapidly drawing closer. Though they were not running toward her, it was only a matter of seconds before they saw her faint tracks; though an inattentive human might miss them, there was no way a trained Goa'uld tracker would.

The assassin controlling O'Neill's body paused in his stride briefly, eyes on the ground, before looking straight at her hiding place.

This time she cursed in Quechua for a little variety.

Praying her movements were concealed by the shadows, she dragged Sam into the opening and slid her gently in, following headfirst with a firm grip on her waist. The trapdoor closed soundlessly the instant her heels cleared the opening, leaving no traces of its existence.

* * *

The ashrak thrilled anew at the faint tingle of naquedah he caught as soon as he turned toward the trees. He increased his speed, hand on the hara'kesh in his pocket. The feeling of the orak grew stronger, stronger - and then suddenly faded. It had disappeared completely by the time he arrived at the first tree. His prey was nowhere to be seen. He swore terribly under his breath before his humans caught up with him.

"She cannot be far. Spread out and search the area!" he barked, just barely remembering to use his host's voice. Ugh. It was disgusting.

"Colonel!"

The ashrak belatedly realized the male was addressing _him._ "Yes?" he snapped.

"I found something!"

He barely kept from snarling at the utter uselessness of that statement. The human had found a bloodstain, but it was too small and the surrounding ground too rocky to be of any use. He stalked off in frustration, hoping to find some indication of where the orak had disappeared to.

* * *

She listened carefully to the soft sounds of the hatch as it sealed shut behind her, translating the clicks and hisses as only its inventor could. Airlock: check. Scanner shield generator: check. Inner door: check. Locks: check, check, check, check, check, check. Energy shield: check. Internal security: check. She let out a sigh of relief as she slid slowly down the padded incline to land on a plush surface, her hands carefully guiding Sam's limp body to rest in the center of the bed.

"Identify," she called to the pitch-black room in a clear voice. "Leyndarmál komutan khuligan."

In answer, the darkness gradually gave way to soft light, bringing her surroundings into view.

The tiny space was barely six feet tall, eight feet wide and eight feet long. The sloping tunnel they had just entered by looked like a glorified laundry chute, ending right over the low rectangular bed. The bed was simply a flexible silver bag filled with a cheap synthetic substance that the humans of Earth used for insulation. There was an empty metal bucket sitting under a simple faucet in one corner, and a drain in the floor of the other corner. There was a crude hole cut in the metal wall next to the entry tunnel, sporting bundles of exposed wires and bits of rock. Lastly, a rope dangled from a dark hole in the center of the low ceiling.

She grinned happily. _Home away from home. _

* * *

The ashrak grumbled in frustration as his search turned up nothing. There were no other indications that his prey had even been here, excepting the bloodstain on the ground. He peered closely at it, but though it was his only lead, it yielded no secrets.

His eyes narrowed. What was he missing?

* * *

I intended to put more into this chapter, but I figured you guys might prefer getting the update to getting a slightly longer chapter.

**Sneak[y] peek:** if you can translate the code my OC used to turn on the lights [it did other things too, btw], you'll get some little hints about her background! I used Google Translate, so it's not that bad.

Please review! Anonymous reviews and one-liners accepted!

Nice day to ya!

XD


	11. Chapter 10

Hey guys! [flinches and covers ears] Yes, I know, it's been forever. No, I did not fall off the face of the earth, though I know it seemed like it. I'm sorry. Came down with one heck of a virus a while ago, and I never let myself write _anything _when I'm sick. Why? Well, if I'm miserable and not on meds, then I write like crap. And meds make me _looooooooopy_. Gah! How people can willingly get high on cough syrup or decongestant is beyond me - I _hate_ how that stuff makes me feel! [shudder] Anyway. Not sick anymore. Sorry again for disappearing.

Special thanks to Roeskva, Pagan Twylight, HathorGirl, and Alexandrea1992 for reviewing my last chapter! You guys are my reason for writing!

* * *

Disclaimer: Dude, if the Stargate franchise was mine, SG-1 would still be running and the first person to say the words 'another movie' to me would have been fired. Just sayin'. However, I DO own my OC. If you want to use or repost anything that's mine, just let me know.

* * *

On to the show! Please leave a review on your way out!

Akaylah

* * *

She finally lowered her hands as the Goa'uld healing device fizzled out. She was out of energy. She had given Jolinar all the help she could before she had been forced to quit.

She did not even realize she was falling until she found herself blinking at the ceiling. Her mind was strangely clear, though it had seemingly disconnected from her body. _Okay, not my first choice of places to go to sleep, but here's good. _Everything hurt, badly, but a tired ghost of a smirk twitched on her face in spite of it. _At least I won't dream._

* * *

Sam was dreaming.

_"Colonel!"_

_The face was hard, cold. Angry._

_"No, Colonel, please! It's me, it's Sam! I'm still here! Please!"_

_The anger deepened on his face until it was contorted with rage - but still he would not speak, would not move._

_"Please! Jack!"_

_Suddenly he was at her throat, pinning her to the wall. His voice was a dangerous hiss. "Stop pretending to be her! You aren't her!"_

_"No, Jack-"_

_"Shut up!"_

_She tried to speak, but she couldn't find her voice._

_"Jack..." she whispered finally._

_He was literally shaking with rage._

_There was a thump somewhere behind him. __"Ow! What the hell?" another voice hissed. It sounded weird somehow._

_His grip tightened. She could not speak anymore. She was frozen._

_"You cannot be her! She is gone!" he hissed, inches from her face._

_Suddenly, his eyes glowed._

_"Samantha Carter, you will die by order of the System Lords."_

_Fear... gut-wrenching, heart-stopping terror..._

_And he was gone._

_But she did not wake._

"Sorry."

Sam spun around to face the voice, and found herself in an open field. Stars, even more bright and beautiful than in the waking world, twinkled overhead, illuminating the speaker. As far as her vision stretched, there was nothing but the stars, the short grass of the field, and the speaker.

"I think that last bit was my fault."

It was her - the strange girl that had appeared out of thin air outside their jail cell.

A small, wry smile. "Technically, you know, I didn't appear. You disappeared."

Sam frowned. Speaking aloud suddenly seemed redundant, but she did it anyway, ignoring the feeling of weirdness it brought. "You can hear my thoughts?"

"For now. While you are here." Suddenly, the girl looked down and chuckled softly, as if to herself. "I suppose I _am_ dreaming, after all. I didn't think I would."

Carter's frown deepened. "Where am I?"

"In my mind. More specifically, in my dream-space."

She gave a start of surprise. Her ever-present curiosity reasserted itself.

The girl shrugged, as if in response to a verbal question. "I am asleep beside you. The only thing I can think of is that I got drawn into your nightmare. Sometimes, in sleep, my mind will do things without my bidding."

Frowning, she spoke again. "Why?"

A small, vaguely embarrassed smile. "I... I want to help people."

That shouldn't have made sense... yet it did. Sam found herself nodding.

She sighed, looking down again. "I am weak still. My mind must rest."

Sam nodded again, her determination surfacing as she gathered herself. "I can deal with nightmares. They're bad when I'm in them, but eventually I'll wake up."

Her companion shook her head with another small smile, this one touched with weariness. "Sometimes... nightmares follow us into the real world." The girl walked forward, reaching out a hand. The field and the stars began to dissolve into black. Fear crept in again, clawing at her mind, struggling for a foothold.

"Wait!"

The yell rang out across the quiet space like the crack of a whip. Sam's companion paused, looking at her quizzically. "Yes?" she said quietly.

Sam found herself calming again. Somehow, it was impossible to _not_ be calm here. She almost apologized, but then something occurred to her that she had _really_ wanted to ask.

"I don't even know your name."

Her companion's solemn expression melted into a gentle smile. "You may call me Kael, if you wish."

Sam nodded, studying the girl as if for the first time. "Kael." And then, because she really wasn't sure what else to say, she ducked her head a little. "Thank you."

The smile turned into a grateful grin. "When you wake up, wake me up."

Sam frowned. "Why? You need to rest."

Kael shook her head. "I cannot afford the time. There are things you and Jolinar do not yet know about our situation, and I will not tell you here. Please, wake me when you wake."

She sighed. "All right, I will."

Kael smiled. "Thank you." Her hand began to move the remaining inch toward Sam's forehead before she could react. "Think of a happy memory."

The hand touched her head, and suddenly she was in a swing, laughing happily as her father pushed her. Kael was gone.

* * *

The ashrak cursed to himself again. He had used his host's position on this world to call out every available human to help him search for the orak, but the search had returned nothing helpful. In fact, no one had found any trace at all. He bent down and inspected the ground again, looking for signs of a false trail among the many booted footprints littering the ground. How these animals managed to make such a mess of a perfectly unspoiled trail was a mystery to him.

"Colonel, sir!"

"Yes?" the ashrak barked, irritated at the human for disturbing his thoughts. _If I was on a Goa'uld world..._ He smirked to himself, reaching up and absently patting the hara'kesh in his pocket. His human shuddered at the images running through his mind. The smirk grew wider.

"General Hammond has called off the search for the night, sir," reported the nameless human.

The ashrak abruptly stood up, barely keeping a snarl off his face, his pleasant mood gone. _"What?"_ he growled.

"He's posted extra guards all around the perimeter, sir," the soldier replied, doing his best not to flinch as he saw the barely-leashed rage in the colonel's eyes. "We will resume the search tomorrow as soon as it's light enough." He frowned. He did not know the colonel personally, but the tense man glaring at him did not seem like the easy-going commander rumor said he was.

Then again, rumor was divided over the colonel's relationship with Major Carter - now a Goa'uld host. _What would that do to a guy? _he thought. _Even if they're just teammates... that would be... beyond horrible. I'd probably be outta my head too._

"Very well. Dismissed, Captain," the colonel said icily, walking off to inspect the patch of trees yet again.

The captain frowned again. Somehow, the other man's behavior just seemed... off.

* * *

She was dreaming. Again.

_"...miracle..."_

Dreaming. After staying awake for four days. Dreaming! That had to be a record.

_"...how could...survive..."_

_"...don't know..."_

Oh well. Might as well go with it.

_"...all I know...is alive...and I'm gonna...everything...power to...that way."_

She frowned. Why couldn't she make out what they were saying?

_"...tell the...can't have...symbiote...not..."_

The 'dream' was fading, even as she realized that it wasn't a proper dream at all. _Whole new spin on the phrase 'wandering mind,' _she thought with a groan before diving gratefully into the oblivion of dreamless sleep.

* * *

Finally, finally, she could stop.

_My host is stable._

Four simple words. Five syllables that, a few hours ago, she thought she wouldn't live to think again.

_We are alive._

Slowly, carefully, she drifted into a light sleep - more of a restful, meditative state than actual sleep. If she reached a dreaming state, she could inadvertently trigger a deepening of the connection between her and Samantha. That was the _last_ thing she wanted.

_I **will** leave her as I promised, even if I have to die at her feet. She will not pay for my mistakes._

* * *

This character-study chapter was _weird_ to write. Did I go too far? I wanted more interaction between Sam and Kael, but they were both sleeping off exhaustion and injuries... so... the dreams. And no one acts exactly normal in their dreams (I don't, anyway,) so if they seem kinda OOC, that's intentional. They wake up next chapter! More action soon!

Quick note about the SJ: this fic will be SJ friendship. SJers, you are totally free to see 'ship if you want. I only addressed it at all in the chapter because it's become the elephant in the room in all non-SJ fics. So this fic will deal with it - after all, how could any author pass up the angsty possibilities of Sam and Jack each thinking the other possessed? muahaha!

Thanks guys! Please review!

XD


	12. Chapter 12

Summary: Samantha wanted her to die. The ashrak wanted her to die. Jolinar had prepared herself for certain death - which, as it turned out, was not so certain after all. An ancient power reveals itself to protect the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra - but can they accept its help? Tok'ra heavy. AU off of In the Line of Duty. Rated T to be safe.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except Kael. If you want to use her in anything, please tell me before you post it.

Beta: Me, so don't be surprised if you see a grammar error! Just tell me in a review or PM so I can fix it. Thanks!

* * *

Hello again, dear readers! I hope I haven't lost all of you... I am so very sorry about the wait for this chapter. Like I've said before, I'm not going to abandon this story, even if it seems I have.

This is a rather short chapter, I know, but I'm already half-finished with the next one, which will be considerably longer.

Warning: the ashrak is about as bad as I can make him and still keep this fic a T. If the mind of a violent psychopath severely disturbs you, I would suggest that you skim the first paragraph.

* * *

The ashrak walked confidently through the squat entrance to the glorified hole the humans called a base. He snorted in disdain at the inept security measures, once again imagining himself reducing them to helpless agony at his feet. _Such animals are good for nothing except entertainment_, he mused as he looked over the tall, thin, pale specimen standing in front of the elevator. _He looks as if he could scream quite enjoyably._ He paused and smiled internally at the wave of utter revulsion coming from his animal. _Do you dislike my thoughts, creature?_ he chuckled. _I shall introduce you to the pleasures of such pursuits very soon, my Tau'ri,_ he purred, sending his host a blurred, darkened version of one of his favorite memories. He would enjoy a clearer recollection of his sport with that particular creature later, when he could give it his full attention. Right now, however, feeling his animal's reaction was proving to be more than sufficient entertainment to liven up a dull walk down further into the humans' hole. He chuckled softly, allowing the sound to escape in a deserted stairway. The confined space echoed his mirth back to him, as if in agreement.

Jack, meanwhile, was wishing with all his being that he could gain control of his body just long enough to relieve the overwhelming urge to throw up.

* * *

Sam surfaced gradually from a pleasant dream of her childhood, blinking the soft artificial light into focus. She moved experimentally, finding her wounds nearly healed. Jolinar was a silent presence in the back of her mind - Sam supposed she was resting. Cautiously, she stood up, surprised at the almost total lack of pain. Remembering her dream-promise, she leaned over the room's other occupant. "Kael," she called.

Dark blue eyes opened instantly and stared at her, fully awake. The girl sat up gingerly, running her hand over her helm in the same way a human would run a hand through their hair. "Ugh."

"Are you all right?" asked Sam in concern as Kael carefully rose to her feet.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Weird dreams."

Sam smiled in spite of herself. "Yeah, me too."

Kael grinned as she bent over a pile of black cubes in the corner. "Welcome to my life," she replied. "Though some of these dreams were weird even by my standards."

Carter opened her mouth to ask a question, but got a cube thrown at her.

"Here. Eat up. We gotta figure out what we're going to do."

Sam looked the cube over curiously as one corner folded back, revealing a small hole. She looked up to see Kael tipping the cube up like it was a soda can, downing the entire contents in a few mouthfuls. She sniffed it dubiously, unable to smell anything. _Nothing else to do,_ she thought, resolutely copying Kael's motion. A completely tasteless, odorless mush flowed evenly into her mouth, and the hungry captain found herself gulping it down like her companion had. It settled lightly in her stomach and left her feeling satisfied, despite its small volume.

"Good warriors' food," commented Kael as she carelessly threw her own cube over her shoulder into the corner. "Fuel you for several hours without making you sluggish."

Sam was still staring curiously at the cube. "What is it?"

A fond smile flitted across her companion's face. "An old friend's invention. Don't worry, it's very nutritious."

~Good waking, Samantha.~

To her credit, Sam only gave a tiny start at the sudden reappearance of the foreign voice in her head. She hesitated for a moment, then replied, [Good morning.]

"Ah, good, you're finally awake, Jolinar. We should talk." Kael took the cube from Sam's hand, tossing it into the corner as well, then sat down on the side of the low bed.

Sam tensed, waiting for the invasion, but Jolinar pulled quietly back. ~No, Samantha, I will not hurt you in such a way again. You can speak for us both.~

Kael responded as if Jolinar had spoken aloud to the room. "I can hear you perfectly well as you are, Jolinar - no such arrangement is needed. Sit down, Sam, please. You and Jolinar are still weak."

Sensing the symbiote's agreement, Sam acquiesced and made herself comfortable. Kael handed her a bottle of water and smiled as the captain drank deeply, then sobered as she began to speak. "My sensors indicate that patrols are still crawling over the surface. We were tracked to within feet of the trapdoor, but no one has yet discovered it. I am confident they will not. Our first task is to resolve the issue of Jolinar's host. Jolinar, do you know of any prospective Tok'ra hosts that we could find quickly?"

~I know of none at all,~ thought Jolinar across her link with Sam, wondering at the strangeness of the arrangement. Never had anyone besides her current host been privy to her private thoughts. ~Hosts are extremely difficult and dangerous to recruit. The process requires weeks.~

"Neither you nor Sam have that kind of time."

"Wait, what?" Carter frowned in confusion.

~She speaks truth, Samantha,~ replied Jolinar apologetically. ~No Tok'ra or Goa'uld can survive such a tenuous connection to a host for more than a few days. And their degeneration will eventually kill the host, as well.~

Kael thought it best to speak now, rather than risk a return of Sam's anger. "There is a third option."

~What?~ thought Jolinar at the same instant as Sam.

Something in the girl's eye sharpened. "Me."

* * *

[ducks under desk] Don't hit me! This was such a great place to stop that I just couldn't resist the cliffie... sorry! The more reviews I get, the quicker the next chapter will go up! It's already half-written, so expect it sometime next week.

Questions? Errors? Thoughts of any kind? Sharing is caring - drop me a line!

Nice day to ya!

Akaylah


	13. Chapter 13

Hello again, readers! New chapter, as promised! I'm on a roll - got the next chapter halfway done. I'm gonna be snowed under in rl this week, so the next chapter will probably be out early next week. I shall try to get it done earlier, but knowing my luck... anyway.

A HUGE thank-you to Roeskva and HathorGirl for reviewing, and to everyone who put this story on alerts - wow! I never dreamed I'd have this many alert followers! Thank you all! You keep this author going!

Akaylah

ps: if you're tired of seeing the ashrak's POV first, that'll change next chapter, I promise. I just now noticed that I've fallen into that habit. Oh, one more thing: since I've taken multiple chapters to establish just how awful of a guy the ashrak is, I'm not going to get too descriptive this chapter. Poor Jack.

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Kael. If you want to use her in anything, I'd be happy to lend her to you for a bit, but please drop me a PM or something before you post. Thanks!

* * *

The ashrak ignored his host for the moment in favor of tracking down the faint signature of naquedah-based weaponry. There was a store of it somewhere very close... he was almost upon it. _The hara'kesh is a most useful and pleasing device, but a zat'ni'katel is better for subduing larger numbers of enemies,_ he thought as he mused on several possible plans to kill his prey and escape.

_You'll never find her,_ his human sent, insolently interrupting his thoughts. _She is trained to disappear, so you might as well go back to where you came from._

The ashrak paused. _You know this training._

_I do. _The animal's loathsome voice was almost smug. However, it offered no resistance as the ashrak riffled through his memories again, quickly glancing at this 'training' it had spoken about.

What he found surprised him. This world was apparently quite densely populated and culturally complex. Its denizens furthermore knew how to use this complexity to great advantage. The ashrak frowned. Though he, too, had this knowledge through his host, he could easily see that a search with his current resources could take several cycles of the local star.

He needed another plan.

Within half a minute, as the door to the armory came into view, he had one.

Jack wished with all his will that he had never spoken.

* * *

"You?"

~You would host a Tok'ra?~

Kael nodded calmly. "I would."

Sam, mind suddenly brimming with questions, blurted out the first one that made it to her mouth. "Are you even compatible?"

She smirked. "Ask Osiris - if you ever find him."

_Osiris, Goa'uld system lord, locked in stasis millennia ago by Ra for attempting to wrest control of the Earth from him, _Jolinar thought automatically.

"You hosted a Goa'uld?"

The puzzling little smirk twisted into a snarl of disdain. "Not willingly, and not for long. I left him squealing on the floor. It was I, not Osiris, who caused havoc on Ra's Earth base."

"Wait... that was thousands of years ago."

A small smile, not quite a smirk this time. "I'm older than I look."

~You commanded his slaves?~ asked Jolinar, a hint of suspicion creeping into her tone despite herself.

"No, Osiris' new host was known. All I had to do was walk like I owned the place." This time, the smirk held a touch of bitterness. "It was beyond unheard of for a host to exile its Goa'uld."

"It still is," replied Sam, feeling Jolinar's speechless shock.

That puzzling little smirk was back. "Well, now you can both say you've heard of it."

Now there was only one question in Sam's mind. "How?"

Kael became completely serious once again. "A combination of biochemical shifting and telepathic attack. I consciously control both abilities, so there is no possibility of 'accidentally' rejecting a symbiote."

There was a pause. Sam remained quiet, waiting for Jolinar's decision. The symbiote was thinking carefully.

"Jolinar, there is much I have not said - more than even you guess right now. However, I can assure you that I am perfectly compatible with a symbiote."

The Tok'ra roused herself to speak. ~Why would you become my host?~

Kael looked up in surprise, then back down at the bed with a troubled look. "We could do so much good together," she said after a moment's pause. "As it is now, I have... limits. Limits that are becoming a burden. I've seen so many people that need help... so very many... and I can do nothing for them."

Jolinar was suddenly reminded of herself, ten thousand years ago, and smiled.

* * *

[No! You cannot do this!]

~I can do anything I please, animal. I am a god to your filthy kind.~

The human's overpowering fear for its fellows suddenly morphed into a grim, ironic fury. It spoke in a low, measured voice, but the ashrak could certainly feel the waves of disgust pouring off of its consciousness. [The lowest mess worker in this mountain is a thousand times better than you, you snake bastard,] it growled. [You are a lower creature than my neighbor's mutt.]

The ashrak was momentarily surprised. He had never before imagined that even this unintelligent creature could ever think itself above a Goa'uld. _I suppose I overestimated it,_ the Goa'uld mused. A slow, malicious smile spread across his host's face. _I must demonstrate the error of its feeble mind._

Detecting his thoughts, the human mentally shrank away. The ashrak grinned. _This host is unusually entertaining. Perhaps these creatures are good for something after all._

* * *

~I consent.~

A broad grin of excitement broke across Kael's face, and for a moment, she looked very young. She said nothing, but immediately lay down on her side, nestling securely into the bed.

Jolinar paused. ~Samantha...I...~

In that moment, Sam could feel all the emotions that Jolinar had held restrained: her guilt, her overwhelming grief for Rosha, her longing for home and family...and above it all, the deep desire for it all to be _over_, to live simply and at peace.

And in that moment, Sam understood, really understood, for the first time.

[It's all right.]

Another rush of regret - regret that all of it, _any_ of it, had happened. ~I am sorry.~

[So am I.]

Curiosity. ~For what? You have done nothing.~

Sam smiled a bit. [For being such a pain-in-the-ass host.]

Jolinar smiled back. ~You are a wonderful host, and a wonderful person. It is truly a rare human who can forgive so easily.~

Sam at last lay down facing Kael. [Well... life's too short to hold grudges,] she replied.

Kael's helmet almost completely retracted, leaving everything exposed except for a wide band from the top of her forehead down the back of her neck. Her eyes were warm, welcoming.

~I wish you good fortune, Samantha Carter of the Tau'ri.~

And the connection was severed.

She was alone.

* * *

I always thought that having a symbiote leave your head would be very traumatic, even if you weren't properly blended... yet another missed opportunity in the series, in my opinion.

What is the ashrak about to do? Well... that will be quite a surprise to everybody except me and Jack... poor, poor Jack...

So... what did you think? How did you guys like the bit of backstory I put in there? More funny, tragic, and just plain weird backstories to come! There are several that I just can't wait to write!

Opinions? Guesses? Problems? Tell me! [stares hopefully at review page] The muse is hungry!

Thank you all again for reading! Have a nice week!

XD


End file.
